Don't Call Me Nymphadora
by SephyRose611
Summary: You never listen to his warnings; you want to be with him. He could be the poorest person in the world and you'd still love him.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: Not mine. Everything is J.K. Rowling's. I'm jealous ;)**

**A/N: This is my first fanfiction so I hope that it's OK. Please read and review. Thanks.x**

**Don't Call Me Nymphadora**

"Love can be dangerous, wolfishly in fact. Yet you cannot help but have feelings for him. He doesn't understand, says he's too old, too poor, but you don't care. You never listen to his warnings; you want to be with him. He could be the poorest person in the world and you'd still love him."

***

**Chapter 1- The Announcement**

"Nymphadora-" Remus began,

"How many times have I told you? Don't call me Nymphadora."

"Sorry," Remus said defensively. "Fine, Dora-"

Tonks raised her eyebrows.

"But Tonks is a silly name," he protested.

"No it isn't," she replied. "It's sensible."

"How is it? Your dearest mother gave you a name that she liked and you throw it back in her face and use your surname."

"So would you if your _dearest mother_ gave you a name like Nymphadora," Tonks interjected fiercely, her hair changing from the usual bubblegum pink to a flaming red.

"Fair point," Remus said, backing down, he knew when he was fighting a losing battle.

She smiled. Her hair changed back to its regular colour.

"Good."

He grinned back. Despite the slight disputes they had, they were very happy and were pretty evenly matched. She was bubbly and vivacious, whereas he was quieter and shy. With her however, Remus Lupin seemed to have come out of his shell a bit. Just a tiny bit.

"Do you think this is a good idea?" Remus asked, hesitantly. He eyed the door with obvious apprehension, hearing the voices of his friends coming from the other side.

"You know I do," Tonks replied. "I suggested it in the first place."

"Good point."

"I always make good points," she shot back grinning.

With that, Remus poked her in the ribs. She fell against the wall, laughing. Remus laughed too, everything about her was infectious.

Ever since she admitted her love for him, he realised that actually, he harboured feelings for her too. He had tried to tell himself that it would pass, but every time he saw her it felt like someone was stabbing him in the heart with Godric Gryffindor's sword. He had remained adamant that he was too old, too poor, and too dangerous. She had remained adamant that she didn't care about his imperfections, she just wanted him. Eventually he had given in to his feelings and he couldn't have been happier. Life with Nymphadora Tonks was one hell of a rollercoaster; a rollercoaster that was exhilarating, exciting and enjoyable. He had never anticipated that his life would turn out like this. Secretly, he loved it.

Tonks took a gasping breath and tried to stop laughing. Having failed that, she proceeded to tickle him. He doubled over, howling with laughter and tried to push her away, resulting in her knocking over the troll leg umbrella stand. Thankfully, the people in the kitchen of Grimmauld Place were making enough noise so that Remus and Tonks remained unheard. Giggling, she set the umbrella stand upright again.

"Honestly," she scalded. "You should know better than that."

"Oh sorry, I forgot," he grinned. "You're clumsy enough to knock it over yourself; you don't need me to push you."

Tonks stuck her tongue out defiantly. She burst out laughing as Remus copied her.

Being with Remus was excellent. She never expected that he could be so much fun. She had fallen in love helplessly and had refused to give up on him. He had tried to make her forget her feelings but to no avail. Every time she had seen him it had felt like she had been run over by the Knight Bus. There had been no way of controlling it and she had tried to forget. That hadn't happened and now she was glad that she had declared her love in front of nearly everyone they knew. He had obviously decided that it was worth a try. However, none of their friends or family knew about their relationship yet. She didn't know what her parents would think about her falling in love with a werewolf. Remus had agreed that it didn't sound hopeful.

When her breathing had returned to normal, Remus took her hand. She squeezed it tightly, looking slightly nervous. In fact, Remus noted, this was possibly the first time he had ever seen her looking anywhere near nervous. He quite liked it. He squeezed her back.

"Are you ready?" he asked gently.

"Not really," she admitted, smiling weakly.

"Me neither," he confessed, eyeing the door handle with apprehension.

She took hold of the handle and with quick kiss and another squeeze of his hand; she pushed the heavy oak door open.

***

Sirius couldn't help but smile as he looked around the kitchen. The sounds of pleasant talk and laughter filled his ears; sounds he never thought of hearing in this god-forsaken place. Growing up here, he had learnt to hate the dusty corridors and draughty rooms. His mother, severe and strict, shouting orders down the stairs. He had hated this place and was glad to escape the pressing silence, broken only by his mother shrieking obscenities. Now it was filled by the majority of his friends and his godson, sitting down in the kitchen, about to celebrate Christmas with him.

The door of the kitchen creaked open and in stepped Remus and Tonks. Sirius smiled, the last of his friends had arrived. At that moment he noticed that their hands were entwined and he shot a sly grin at Tonks, who winked at him.

"Ah, there you are dears, I was wondering when you'd arrive," Mrs Weasley smiled gently, bustling around the kitchen. "Now, what can I get you to eat?"

"Um, well before that," Remus said nervously, his voice catching in his throat. "We have an announcement to make."

"Yes- it's nothing serious though," Tonks assured quickly, seeing a fleeting look of horror on some peoples faces. She smiled happily, looking again at Sirius and when she spoke, Remus could tell that she was excited.

"We thought we should tell you that we're together now!"

A scattering of applause swept across the room and a few congratulations; Sirius grinned and made his way over to the happy couple. Remus was relieved and, he noted, Tonks couldn't stop smiling. This, after all, had been her dream. Sirius clapped him on the back and muttered something low enough for only Remus to hear.

"Finally mate. She was getting pretty desperate. I mean, she really liked you."

"I know," Remus admitted. "I'm glad it's turned out like it has."

"Me too," Sirius whispered. "She couldn't look happier if she'd won the Triwizard Tournament."

Remus grinned at his old friend, just wishing that James and Lily could have been there too; he knew that they would have been proud. Lily had always said that he would end up with a beautiful, understanding woman. Sirius had been dismissed as a 'hopeless case'.

After a few minutes, Sirius stopped smiling momentarily and looked slightly horrified, as though a terrible thought had occurred to him.

"What is it?" Tonks asked quickly.

"Wait a minute, this is bad," he said, pondering something. "Moony's getting some action and I'm not. I feel left out."

Everyone laughed and Remus and Tonks breathed a sigh of relief. Sirius grinned again.

"What? It's true."

Tonks poked him in the side.

"You had me worried for a minute there," she admitted.

"Same," Remus added. "Honestly, you shouldn't do that to me mate."

Chatter filled the room again as they sat at the roughly hewn oak table to eat the Christmas dinner that Mrs Weasley had so kindly prepared for them.

"Thanks Molly, this is great," Tonks praised through a mouthful of food.

"Thank you dear, but you really shouldn't talk with your mouth full," Molly scalded. "Honestly Nymphadora, I would have thought your mother would have taught you better."

Tonks bit her tongue as Remus stamped on her foot. He squeezed her hand on the table and smiled gently.

"Just leave it," he muttered. "It doesn't matter."

"Ok fine. But honestly, Nymphadora?"

"It's your name," Remus told her.

He raised his eyebrows to stop her as he could see that she was going to find a retort.

"I'm not saying anything," she whispered defiantly, before continuing with her dinner.

***

Later that night, Remus and Tonks settled down on their sofa. They had left Grimmauld Place at the same time as the Weasley's; now they were back at Remus' flat. Tonks had only recently moved in and all her stuff was still strewn across the floor; suitcases were piled in the bedroom. As they cuddled there, Remus was sweeping the room with his eyes.

"Honestly, I didn't know that a woman could own that many clothes ... And all those shoes ..."

"You obviously haven't known many women then," Tonks observed. "This is normal for most women ... Actually, most women own more than this."

Remus gaped as he surveyed the stack of suitcases and incredulously shook his head. He didn't expect to understand women's need for so many clothes and shoes. Tonks wasn't too bad, he had to admit and he liked the clothes she wore. Although, his wardrobe had considerably less, consisting of two shabby coats; three pairs of trousers with patches; three shirts that had seen better days; one threadbare sweatshirt; four pairs of shoes and a pair of trainers. All he needed. To him, there was no point owning more than necessary, just what you wore the majority of the time.

Tonks shook her head in despair. Remus didn't understand the need for lots of clothes; his wardrobe was minimal. She had decided that he could do with some new clothes, but they just couldn't afford it.

Remus had no job: once people learned of his lycanthropy he was turned down; people didn't want to risk having a werewolf in the workplace. She was an Auror and the money that she earned was the only source of income for them. Remus had always remained adamant that he was too poor for her but now they were together, she could help him; although he disliked charity he did accept her money because they needed it to pay for necessities. However, there wasn't enough for new clothes because the money only just covered the bills and food. Tonks had no idea how Remus had managed to cope on his own.

"Well I think you have enough clothes," Remus pointed out. "Although I've no idea how all this is going to fit in the wardrobe."

"It'll fit," Tonks reassured him. "We'll make it."

Remus looked doubtful for a moment then agreed. They would have to make it fit: there wasn't enough money to buy a new wardrobe. They lapsed into silence, not uncomfortably. Remus had no idea how he had ended up with someone as amazing as Tonks, but he was glad that he had. He had wanted to be able to provide for her; be able to buy her things that she wanted. As it was, she paid for all the bills and bought everything new that entered the dingy flat. Despite this, she never moaned once and Remus loved her for it.

Tonks smiled gently and slid her hand down his arm. She took his hand and pushed her fingers through his.

"Are you OK?" she asked. "You seem pretty quiet."

"Yeah I'm alright," Remus assured her. "I was just thinking about how unfair it is that you have to pay for everything."

She shook her head vigorously. "I honestly don't mind, please stop thinking about it," she pleaded.

He nodded. She squeezed his hand gently, hoping to reassure him.

"I don't care about the money," she admitted. "I just care about you."

Remus relaxed, his tension evaporating as her words soothed him: he was positive that she meant every word of it.

"I care about you too," he said, slightly embarrassed. "I only care about you."

Tonks smiled, her heart swelling.

"You really mean that?" she whispered.

"With all my heart," he assured her. "I just wish that I could do more for you."

"As I said, I honestly don't care. As long as I have you, that's all that matters."

"And as long as I have you, that's all that matters to me," Remus admitted.

She smiled, turning her head so he could kiss her. He grinned back and before he knew it, their lips were brushing against each others and their tongues were dancing together.

***

When Remus woke the following morning, he realised that Tonks wasn't in bed next to him. He looked at the clock. She never got up before 8am on a weekday and it was only 7:30. Puzzled, he pulled away the covers and got out of bed. He padded into the living room to find it empty. Just as he was about to call her name she appeared in the doorway of the tiny kitchen. This morning her hair was a vibrant purple.

"Well don't just stand there," she said grinning. "Come and help get breakfast ready."

Remus grinned back and followed her into the kitchen to discover a rather huge mess; the room looked as through a toddler had run through it pulling the contents of the cupboards onto the floor and worktop.

"Ah," he said, slightly dazed. "Do you really need help making more of a mess? You're doing pretty well yourself."

Tonks stuck her tongue out at him playfully. He grinned.

Together they cleaned up the mess that she had made. Remus could still remember the last time Tonks had offered to help Mrs Weasley cook dinner: the room had ended up looking rather similar to his kitchen. He was sure that Mrs Weasley was blessed with an equally sound memory and, needless to say, she had never asked Tonks to help with the cooking since. Remus had a sneaking suspicion that she never would.

"Nice hair," he complimented as they worked.

"Thanks, I felt like a bit of a change," she said grinning. "Purple is cool colour."

"It is," Remus agreed. "In fact it's my favourite colour."

Tonks smiled knowingly.

Once they had finished cleaning up the mess that she had made, they prepared their breakfast. Tonks was about to cut some slices of bread for toast when Remus stopped her.

"Maybe I should use the bread knife," he cautioned. "I think it would be safer. That's one hell of a huge blade and I'd rather not take you to St. Mungo's this morning."

She grinned at him and stuck her tongue out, although she had to admit that he had a point.

"Okay fine," she agreed. "I'll do some fried eggs and bacon then."

Remus sighed and then nodded. He wasn't sure which injury was better: a burn or a deep cut. He just hoped that Tonks didn't catch fire like his tea towels often did when she accidentally dangled them too close to the hob. _And anyway_, he thought, _she's smouldering enough._

After eating their breakfast together, they prepared to go their separate ways for the day.

"Work. Wonderful," Tonks said grumpily.

"Still, we need the money," Remus pointed out.

"Yep, you're right. I'll go of course."

"I knew you'd be fine with it, you get to spend the day with Mad-Eye."

"Ooh yeah," she grinned.

It was his turn to stick his tongue out at her. Laughing, she tickled him under the armpits. He writhed on the sofa, laughing and gasping for breath. She grinned back, hands on hips.

"Job done."

She picked up her coat and smiled at Remus as he got to his feet.

"I'm off," she told him.

"Okay, see you when you get back," he smiled, and then remembered something. "I'm gonna go and visit Sirius at some point today so if I'm not back when you are, you know where I am."

"Cool," she replied. "See you later."

Remus gave her a hug and a quick kiss.

"See you later. Have fun!"

She grinned mischievously and closed the door behind her. Remus smiled before picking up his coat and keys, preparing to follow her.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Disclaimer: The books and the characters aren't mine. If they were, Remus and Tonks wouldn't have died.**_

_**A/N: This is the final chapter. Please read and review. Thanks.x**_

**Chapter 2- Here's To Our Future**

Sirius cursed as the portrait of his mother shrieked from down the hallway. The stupid woman had used a charm that meant nobody could get the damned canvas off the wall. Now, if anybody made a single noise in the hallway, she would start shrieking and cursing. In his anger, Sirius had hidden her behind a Doxy-ridden curtain but it didn't have much effect on muffling the noises that she made. He made his way into the hallway to help shut her up. He grinned at Remus as they fought her back behind the velvet curtain.

"Lovely welcome that," Remus smiled.

"Yeah, sorry about that," Sirius growled, glaring at the curtain.

"Stupid woman won't even leave me alone now."

"Indeed not. Still giving you grief after all this time."

"Yeah exactly. It's a wonderful welcome. Instead of 'hello son, it's nice to see you again', I get, 'you filthy traitor, coming into my house, ruining the family tradition and dishonouring us all'. She always was a pleasant woman."

"Yeah, never off your back was she?"

"Nope. Thank Merlin James' parents let me come 'round a lot."

"Saved your sanity he did."

"Indeed he did," Sirius sighed.

They lapsed into silence, thinking about the old days.

"Still, it's good to see you again mate. Do you wanna come into the kitchen?"

"Yeah, that'd be good," Remus agreed and followed Sirius; he grinned as he passed the umbrella stand, remembering Tonks last night.

"How's Tonks?" Sirius asked before they had even sat down.

"She's as happy as a lark," Remus admitted, a huge grin on his face.

"You look pretty happy too," remarked Sirius, smiling at his old friend. He did look very happy but he also noticed that Remus looked greyer than ever and there were more patches in his clothes.

"How are you holding up?" Sirius asked, slightly concerned as he indicated Remus' clothing.

"Well, I'm perfectly happy," he admitted. "Money's tight as usual but we're managing ... Tonks is managing."

"You'll do fine mate," Sirius assured him and patted him gently on the arm. "As long as you have enough money to live on, then I reckon you'll be OK. And I'm here if you ever need any help."

"Thanks, it means a lot," Remus smiled. "We should be alright though."

"If you do need help, just ask."

"You'll be the first port of call, trust me."

Remus realised that this was the first time that he had been alone with his best friend for quite a long time. Aside from the Order meetings, he had hardly ever seen him; he had taken to going back to his flat quite quickly to spend time with Tonks. Sadly yet fondly, he remembered the old days, when the four Marauders mischievously patrolled the corridors of Hogwarts together. When James and Lily had been killed, everyone had sobered up, realising that there was a dangerous world out there, ready to destroy them. When Sirius had been taken to Azkaban for a crime he didn't commit, Remus had been left with nothing and after escaping Azkaban, Sirius had become haunted, a shadow of the man he used to be. They had all lost too much to be happy for long.

Sirius stood up and busied himself making tea for the two of them.

"Sugar?" he asked.

"No, not for me thanks," Remus said. "I'm used to drinks without it now."

Sirius didn't have to ask why: money was obviously very thin on the ground. He felt sorry for his friend but really, there was nothing that he could do. As long as Remus was happy, he decided, that was all that mattered. He knew Tonks was perfectly content so he wasn't worried about her at all. He carried the drinks over and sat at the table opposite Remus.

"Now then," he smiled. "Was there any reason for your visit today?"

Remus looked uncomfortable and squirmed nervously on his seat.

"Erm, not really, no... Just a catch up really."

Sirius raised his eyebrows.

"You expect me to believe that? You always used to have something to say," he grinned. "Even if it was just telling us off, Prefect."

"Hey, I had to do my job," Remus protested.

"I know, I know, smarty pants. So come on, tell; let's get the serious stuff over with first," he winked.

"Ok fine," Remus nodded, gulping nervously. "I know it's pretty sudden... And I don't have much money... But, well... I'd like to ask

Tonks to marry me."

Sirius stared at him for a moment, slightly shocked. Then he broke into a huge grin.

"That's excellent mate, really brilliant!" he enthused.

"You think?" Remus asked, looking terribly relieved.

"I do, honestly. She'll love it."

"I hope so."

"She will, I promise you. You'll probably have to drag her down from the ceiling, she'll be that happy."

Remus grinned.

"Thanks mate. I was just a bit worried about the money; I mean I can hardly afford a new pair of trousers, never mind the rings and then a wedding."

"I'll help," Sirius said quickly.

"No, I can't expect you to," Remus shook his head. "It's not yours to pay for."

"No it's not, but I want to help. Consider it as my wedding present to you both."

Remus still looked uncomfortable but he knew that if he declined, there was likely to be no wedding at all. He agreed.

"Ok, I'll let you help with the cost of the wedding if you really want to. I'd like to pay for her rings though."

"I completely understand mate. That's excellent!"

Remus smiled happily, just hoping that Tonks would think so too.

***

"Wotcher," a familiar voice said from the kitchen as Remus stepped into the flat. He briefly wondered what Tonks was up to in there, remembering the events of the morning. Quickly, he hid the ring he had just bought in his pocket; he just hoped that it wouldn't get damaged.

"Hi," he said, walking towards the kitchen. "How was work?"

"Ha," she said, as she appeared holding a knife. "It was work I suppose. Two cases today, Mad-Eye was pretty tense. Constant vigilance... God I'm sick of that sentence."

Remus returned her smile. "He's just extra cautious, we all are nowadays."

"I suppose," Tonks said, shrugging. "Still, if I hear that again..." she trailed off.

She smiled at him. "Hug?"

"I'd rather you put the knife down first," he reminded her. "I don't fancy being stabbed to death by my girlfriend thanks."

Tonks laughed. "Fair enough. I'll give you that," she grinned and put the knife on the worktop.

Remus opened his arms and she immediately stepped into them, holding him tightly. He exhaled deeply, trying to calm his nerves. He had absolutely no idea how he was going to approach this. He wondered whether she could hear his traitorous heart thumping against his chest, giving away his plans. Before he had decided what he was going to do, she stepped out of his embrace and smiled.

"Sandwich?" she asked casually, pointing towards the knife.

"Go on then," he smiled. "Do you mind if I go and sit down?"

"Not at all. I am capable of using a knife myself you know."

He grinned, reminding himself to tell her that next time she cut herself. Although, knowing him, he'd be more likely to be worried sick than laugh at her. He sighed, running his fingers through his hair. He decided that it would be best to get everything over with as soon as possible. He couldn't take these nerves for much longer.

Tonks walked back into the room holding two plates and handed one to Remus.

"Wow, you didn't cut yourself?" Remus stated, mock incredulously.

Tonks rolled her eyes.

"Top marks for observation there," she grinned. "You could work as an Auror with surveillance skills like that."

It was his turn to roll his eyes. She grinned.

"Nah, you know I'd cramp your style," he muttered. She looked at him, slightly affronted; she crossed her arms, he noted, over her rather attractive chest and glared at him.

"What do you mean?" she asked defiantly, her hair turning flaming red as it always did when she was angry.

"You know I didn't mean it," Remus said, wishing he'd kept his mouth shut. "Sorry, I'm just a bit stressed."

"So am I," she pointed out. "I've been at work all day and the

Ministry just isn't safe any more. To tell the truth I'm worried: how long can it take for You-Know-Who to seize control of there?"

"I don't know, but it can only be a matter of time I suppose. I appreciate that that's stressful sorry. I'm just a bit-" he gestured randomly in the air, not knowing quite what it meant.

Tonks looked at him gently, her hair back to its normal bubblegum pink.

"So come on, tell me what's wrong," she chided gently.

"Nothing's wrong at all," he admitted truthfully. "In fact, completely the opposite."

She looked slightly confused. He steeled himself, putting his hand in his pocket. He wasn't exactly ready, but he supposed that now was the right moment to do it. He loved her and surely that was all that mattered?

He smiled nervously.

"Well, Dora-" he ignored her raised eyebrows and got onto his knees, deciding that traditional was best. He presented the ring. "-I was wondering whether you would do me the pleasure of marrying me?"

There was a stunned silence. Tonks looked from him, to the ring, back to him again. Her mouth split into a huge smile and dimples framed her delighted grin.

"Oh Remus," she gasped, astounded. "I'd love to!"

He breathed a sigh of relief and broke into a huge smile.

"Thank Merlin for that!"

She laughed as she admired the ring that Remus had just slid onto her finger. It was a simple silver ring with a diamond set in the centre and delicate silver lines criss-crossing around it.

"It's beautiful," she breathed. "But how on Earth did you afford it?"

He smiled knowingly. "I've been saving up for a while. I've wanted to buy you something precious for a long time and, well, I suppose the time was right."

"You were supposed to buy a new coat with that money," she shook her head. "But I'm glad you didn't."

Remus smiled, he was glad too.

"You went to see Sirius?" she questioned knowingly.

"You guessed it. I had to seek a second opinion before I bought the ring. I had to make sure that it was a good idea."

"It was! Oh God, it really was. Thank you so much! I love it... I love you."

He found it impossible not to smile at the swell in his heart that her words produced.

"And I love you too."

She threw herself into his arms and gave him a huge hug. Still in his arms, she began bouncing delightedly so he was forced to join in. Grinning, he began bouncing too; forgetting any fears he had before and allowing the joy to sweep over him.

***

Later that night, Remus and Tonks sat on the sofa together. Tonks was still smiling and she had been for the past hour. They had Flooed everybody they knew to tell them the good news and now, Remus decided, he was pretty sick of hearing the word 'congratulations'. The only people left to tell were Tonks' parents.

"This probably isn't a good idea," Tonks admitted as she eyed the fireplace with apprehension. "You know how they were about us being together."

"You're right of course," Remus agreed. "But they do have to know: you're their daughter, it's only fair."

"I don't see what their problem is anyway."

"I do. I'm a werewolf. No parent would really want their only child to fall in love with a werewolf would they?"

"No, I suppose not. But I did and they have to face that and support me don't they? Isn't that a parent's job?"

"It is. They'll come 'round I'm sure, but they need to trust you, so come on, go and tell them of our engagement," Remus encouraged.

Tonks smiled and squeezed his hand before getting up and heading towards the fireplace. With another smile she took a handful of Floo powder from the pot on the mantelpiece, threw it in and stuck her head in the fireplace.

"Mother?" Tonks called into the living room.

"Nymphadora," Andromeda said, appearing in the doorway. "What on Earth are you doing down there?"

"I can't stay long," Tonks replied. "I have to go and celebrate."

She waited for her mother to process the information. A look of dawning realisation crept across her face.

"Celebrate?" Andromeda asked. "Why?"

"Remus asked me to marry him-" she ignored her mother's gasp, "- I said yes."

Andromeda went stiff and attempted a smile. "Oh, that's nice of him."

Tonks closed her eyes and breathed deeply. She knew her mother wouldn't like the announcement but she had hoped that she would have been more supportive.

"Is that ok?"

"Yes, yes, that's good, congratulations."

Tonks sighed, she decided to talk to her mother another day; right now, she had a fiancé to go back to.

"Thank you," she smiled. "Anyway, I'd better go now."

She prepared to pull her head out of the fire when Andromeda stopped her.

"Dora," she gulped. "I really am happy for you, you know."

Tonks gave a small smile and nodded, before pulling her head out of the fire. Andromeda stared at the flames after her daughter had disappeared. She broke into a grin.

"Ted!" she called out of the door. "Tonks is going to get married!"

Theodore Tonks appeared down the hallway grinning, his deep brown eyes sparkling.

"That's excellent news!"

Andromeda hugged herself happily: her daughter was growing up. She only wished that she was openly emotional and could really show her daughter how she felt. _But she knows_, Andromeda thought, _Tonks must know how I feel and how happy I am for her._

Tonks shook her head to get the ash out of her spikes.

"Careful of the rug," Remus pointed out. "We can't afford another one for another hundred years."

Tonks nodded.

"How did it go then?" Remus asked.

Tonks drew a finger across her throat. "Ah. That bad?"

"I'm afraid so," she muttered. "She'll get over it eventually."

Remus gave her a hug, hoping it'd cheer her up. She clutched him back, seeing the ring on her finger again and smiled happily. She morphed hair colour to purple and grinned, deciding to forget her mother's reaction. She moved out of his embrace and smiled at him. Strands of vivid violet hair fell across her forehead and a wave of affectionate desire punched Remus heavily in the stomach. He returned her smile.

"Well come on then," she winked. "Let's celebrate."

They settled down on the small sofa again. As he watched Tonks fiddle with her ring, Remus couldn't believe that he was this lucky, it didn't seem real.

"I'm so lucky to have you," he admitted suddenly. "I never expected to end up with someone as wonderful as you."

"Same. I never expected to have so much fun which such a caring guy. I suppose this is happiness."

"I suppose so." He paused, thinking of what he was and the age gap between them. "You found happiness with me?" Remus asked.

Tonks nodded solemnly. "I know. It's an odd world isn't it?"

Remus cuffed her lightly across the head, laughing.

"Oi you," he said, mock seriously. "There are plenty of other women who could be in your position you know."

She grinned. "That's comforting. Not going to torment me _at all_."

He rolled his eyes. "Nope, because you know I didn't mean it."

"Might not do."

"Do."

"Might not."

"Do."

"Don't."

Remus stuck his tongue out playfully; Tonks laughed.

"I could prove it to you," he grinned.

"And how would you do that."

She raised her eyebrows suggestively. He winked.

"It'll have to wait. We have a wedding to plan first."

"Good point. I suppose you don't want to marry a balloon do you?"

He laughed.

"I'll go and get some drinks; I think we deserve a toast."

"I'll have mine buttered please."

He shot her an exasperated glance, chuckling.

When Remus came back into the room holding two goblets he found Tonks stood by the window, gazing out at the stars. He handed her a goblet of butterbeer and smiled. She looked at his goblet.

"It's supposed to be a full moon tonight," she remarked.

"Yep," he showed her his goblet. Wolfsbane potion sloshed up towards the rim.

"You're prepared. Good."

"Indeed I am, but there's still time to go yet."

Tonks smiled and took his hand, slipping her fingers through his. He squeezed her hand gently.

"A toast," he said, raising his goblet. She smirked. "To my future wife and our life."

"You're a poet and you didn't know it," she said smiling and raising her goblet too. "To me… And our life obviously."

They chinked goblets and took a sip of their drinks.

Remus smiled and raised his goblet again. "Here's to our future."

Before Tonks could reply, Remus' boggart slipped out from behind a cloud, its eerie light casting shadows on his haunted face. He took a last draught of the potion and walked quickly into their bedroom. She watched him go with a look of pity on her face.

Later on, Tonks sat at the window gazing out at the stars again. She smiled as she turned towards the tamed werewolf at her side. Tonks had persuaded him that the potion would work and he had eventually allowed her to see him after the transformation. She hadn't known what to expect but hadn't been scared: the Wolfsbane had taken effect and he hadn't harmed her. She reached out and stroked the wolf's head with a steady hand. Looking at him, she raised her goblet to finish the toast he had started.

"Here's to our future."

_fin._


End file.
